WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Former Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul urged voters on Wednesday to support third-party candidates and said he had turned down a request to endorse John McCain, his party's nominee.

At a news conference with Ralph Nader and other third-party presidential candidates spanning the political spectrum, Paul said voters in the November 4 election should look beyond "the lesser of two evils" -- McCain and Democratic nominee Barack Obama.

Full Story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080911/pl_nm/usa_politics_paul_dc_2This link is broken, either the page no longer exists or there is some other issue like a typo.

After reading all of your political commentary I finally found something I agree with you on. I'm also writing in Ron Paul for president. I'm tired of these two bafoons (Obama and McCain) avoiding the issues that are important to this country. The politicians from both parties and the MSM insist on making issues out of reverends and stupid comments instead of concentrating on what effects the health and safety of our country. To hell with all of them.

billw wrote:After reading all of your political commentary I finally found something I agree with you on. I'm also writing in Ron Paul for president. I'm tired of these two bafoons (Obama and McCain) avoiding the issues that are important to this country. The politicians from both parties and the MSM insist on making issues out of reverends and stupid comments instead of concentrating on what effects the health and safety of our country. To hell with all of them.

You know Bill, Ron Paul may not be perfect, I may disagree with some of his ideas & he may not be a favorite to win the election, but as an honorable, gutsy & truthful man, he alone represents the spirit of this forum, IMO. We are unusual here in that his forum is filled with people who blaze their own trail, aren't afraid to roll up their sleeves & do some work, are not rich (born into privilege) & like to think for themselves rather than be told what is the right thing to do. (Hell.....If we did, we'd all be heating our homes with our old oil burners & paying $4,000-$8,000 to heat our homes this winter like every one else!)

As I said in an earlier post on a different thread: " I have decided that neither major party has "EARNED" my vote this November. Instead I will vote for an honest, very gutsy guy....Ron Paul. I do not agree with all of his ideas/policies but never have with any candidate but I refuse to throw away my vote on "The lessor of two evils" based on what the "Talking Heads" tell me about what my vote would mean, etc....BS!! I trust Ron Paul to not just "mouth" what's popular or politically expedient this hour, or look me in the eye & lie, ...but to do the right an honorable thing........What a concept for a politician!!."

I hope others here will rethink which "line" they are being "herded" into by the major political parties this year.

chabbo wrote:While I agree with what you are saying about writing in Ron Paul for President, I may have to reconsider doing that if Ron Paul becomes Bob Barr's VP nominee:

Agreed. I hate Barr & would never vote for him. If a Barr/Paul ticket is on the ballot..... I wont select it. I'll still write in just Ron Paul's name for President. (You can write in any name you want!)

Don't get me wrong, I'm a full blown Paulite, to me all of his policies are nearly perfect. The problem with writing him in is that the vote may never get counted. I think part of the reason that he made this declaration is because we need to vote for a party that is already on the ballot. I'd love to write Paul in, and I'm not a big fan of Barr, but a message needs to be sent to the crooks and traitors who are currently on the field. By handily ignoring write ins they will not understand our presence and anger. If on the other hand, if they have to count the votes the message might be clearer. I'm nearly to the point of feeling that the folowing is true. "You vote, Diebold decides."

Sorry Devil, but I meant I would have to vote for the Barr/Paul ticket. The two party system is broken and cannot be fixed without a real alternative for the voters. Although I would love to see Ron Paul as President, a Barr/Paul Ticket would stand a better chance of winnng and would still get Ron Paul's message out than simply a "write-in" Ron Paul candidacy.

I know Bob Barr has asked Ron Paul before, and I do not think it is likely that he will agree this time around, but uniting the ticket in this fashion might (hopefully) give the alternative third party some real legs, imho. Otherwise, nothing will change except the faces, and neither Dem or Repub candidate will be what the country needs for the next 4 years given the condition that it is in.

I called the State Board of elections to find out how write ins are tabulated and why my past votes have never been counted or appear in the paper.

This is the info I got. It is for NC only and each state does it differently.

Barr will be listed on the ballot as a Libertarian candidate.There will be three acknowledged write ins for this election in the state of NC,One from the green party named Mckinney, one the Federalist party named Moore and then good old Ralph Nader.Any write in besides these there will not be counted. When the results for the election appear in the paper there will be a category for Mccain, Obama, Barr and Other. Only the three mentioned above in the other category will be counted and they will be lumped together.

What would happen if everyone in the United States voted for Ron Paul? Would the delegates not be able to cast their votes for the other candidates like McCain or BO? No, I believe they would be able to vote for McCain or BO, but can you imagine the news that would be generated and the message to McCain and BO if they pursued policies other than the Ron Paul agenda?? In essence, a write-in for Ron Paul, with enough numbers, would generate enough interest in his positions to make them credible and for others to take notice. Right now, they are not even known by most Americans.

Although they may not be able to tally the precise number of votes for Paul, they would be able to tally the number of votes for people other than McCain, BO and the other listed candidates. It would not take much to assume quite rightly that the other write-in votes (not otherwise accounted for) were for Ron Paul-- a moral victory of sorts and a step in the right direction.

SAU wrote:Don't get me wrong, I'm a full blown Paulite, to me all of his policies are nearly perfect. The problem with writing him in is that the vote may never get counted.

Please don't take offense at this but I will not make my vote based on fear! Fear is what the major political parties are counting on to get us all to line up like sheep behind their candidate! In this case, fear that (they say) that your vote may not be counted or fear you will be throwing away your vote because only their "Anointed" candidates can really win!Well I say BS!!...I'm voting for the candidate that my heart & my brain tell me to vote for!!I owe the Democrats & the Republican party exactly what they have ever done for me..........Absolutely Nothing!

Last edited by Devil505 on Thu Sep 11, 2008 9:51 pm, edited 1 time in total.

SAU wrote:Any write in besides these there will not be counted. When the results for the election appear in the paper there will be a category for Mccain, Obama, Barr and Other. Only the three mentioned above in the other category will be counted and they will be lumped together.

If that is the law in your state then I would have your reps fight it as unconstitutional in your state's highest court. Where does it say (in the US Constitution) that citizens can only vote for certain candidates that are picked by the rich & powerful people?

Tell your state reps that your state voting laws violate the US Constitution, but I would still do the right thing & write in the person I like!